The making of Mudryk: Football, faith and reuniting with his ‘football father’

The 25-year-old winger joins forces with Roberto De Zerbi once again following a fruitful period together at Shakhtar Donetsk which helped the burgeoning talent emerge as one of the most promising young attackers in Europe.

Our new number 27 is fast, skilful and dangerous in one-versus-one situations and arrives hungry to deliver in this new chapter and opportunity at Tottenham Hotspur.

This is his story to Spurs…

Studious start

Born in Krasnohrad, a city in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine, on 5 January 2001, Mykhailo was once a boy with the dream of becoming a professional footballer who grew up playing on the streets with his friends.

At aged nine, he made an important first step on his journey when he joined the Metalist Kharkiv football school – a place which holds a special place in his heart to this day.

Raised and supported by his mother and father who are both teachers, ‘Misha’ – as he is known to friends and family – excelled in school yet his number one priority was to play football at the highest level.

After four years at Metalist, his footballing education continued at Dnipro for two years before signing for one of the most prestigious clubs in Ukraine with Shakhtar Donetsk at 16 years old.

During this period, the pacey winger began an equally rapid rise through Shakhtar’s academy system and for his nation as he represented each youth team from Under-16 upwards in his teenage years.

By 17, the promising talent earned his first-team debut in the Ukrainian Cup, a 3-2 win over local rivals Olimpik Donetsk in the round of 16, and made his first matchday squad a month later in the Ukrainian Premier League as an unused substitute.

With bags of potential but still raw in his experience, he was loaned out to top-flight side Arsenal Kyiv midway through the 2018/19 season where he gained his first taste of league football.

In 2019/20, the young forward remained at Shakhtar and predominantly played for the youth side but did feature three times during the Premier League final stages to help his side seal the title.

The following season began with a productive loan spell at Desna Chernigiv where he made 10 league appearances in a successful period for his loan side who were third in Ukraine’s top division after 13 games.

Developing under De Zerbi

Misha was recalled by his parent club after the winter break in February and made his maiden league appearance for the Miners as a late substitute in a 2-0 win at Vorskla Poltava, playing two further league games that term as his side finished runners-up.

Despite his small sample of seven first team appearances for Shakhtar at the time, internally the club remained excited about his prospects and the appointment of a certain Italian head coach in May 2021 helped unlock his potential.

Given his full league debut by Roberto against Oleksandriya on gameweek three, his next start brought two assists before he turned creator again to help knockout out AS Monaco in a Champions League qualifier to reach the group stage.

By the turn of the calendar year, he had opened his account in a 5-0 league win over Mariupol in September 2021 and played in every Champions League fixture in a group featuring Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Sheriff Tiraspol.

His performance in the Bernabeu, in particular, was the one that made those on the continent really take notice. Shakhtar lost 2-1 but the Madridistas gave the young Ukrainian a standing ovation when he was substituted in the second half – a rare honour for an opposition player.

Post-winter break in February 2022, the Ukrainian Premier League was suspended due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and thus the early conclusion of the 2021/22 season saw him end with two goals and nine assists in 19 appearances for his club, scooping their Player of the Year.

Misha went on to make his senior international debut in a 2022 World Cup qualification play-off victory over Scotland in June of that year and again featured off the bench as his nation missed out on the major tournament after a 1-0 defeat to Wales in the final round.

Back at club level in 2022/23, he was now a key man for Shakhtar and was taking the Ukrainian Premier League by storm with seven goals and six assists in his opening 12 league games in a blistering start to the season.

His early domestic form translated onto the European stage with a goal and two assists in a 4-1 win over RB Leipzig in their Champions League group stage opener and he went on to start every game in a group also consisting of Celtic and Real Madrid.

Largely employed off the left wing, he also showed his capabilities at driving through the middle with a superb run and strike into the top corner in a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park, ending the group stage with three goals and two assists.

By January 2023, the then 21-year-old had emerged as one of the brightest talents on the continent and departed Shakhtar for Chelsea having made 44 appearances, registering 29 goal involvements, as well as being named Ukraine’s Footballer of the Year for 2022.

Premier League dream

Moving to London on 15 January, Misha departed war-torn Ukraine with his family and friends remaining in his homeland. Speaking back in 2022, he said how football is one thing that makes Ukrainian people happy even in the darkest moments. So, holding the spirit of Ukraine in his heart, he left home and his loved ones behind at 22 to fulfil one of his dreams of playing in England's Premier League.

A week later, he announced himself with an exciting 35-minute cameo in a goalless draw with Liverpool at Anfield where he twice went close to scoring on debut – one chance following some lovely link-up with Conor Gallagher – and his impressive pace and direct dribbling really caught the eye.

Going on to clock the third-fastest top speed in the division at 36.63 km/h (22.76 mph) that term, the versatile forward made 15 league appearances in his start to life in England and a further two in the Champions League as Chelsea lost out to Real Madrid in the quarter finals.

This came against the backdrop of managerial changes at Stamford Bridge. Graham Potter was dismissed at the start of April – with our current Assistant Head Coach Bruno Saltor overseeing another 0-0 with Liverpool – and replaced by Frank Lampard for the run-in.

Having finished 12th in the Premier League in 2022/23, the club then appointed Mauricio Pochettino ahead of the new campaign and the winger went on to play 41 times in all competitions, registering seven goals and four assists.

His first goal for the club arrived in a 2-0 victory at Fulham in early October and two games later scooped the club’s Goal of the Month for that month with a stunning strike in a 2-2 draw with Arsenal.

Supplying consecutive league assists in 3-2 win over Roberto’s Brighton side and a 2-1 defeat at Manchester United, he then scored a stoppage-time equaliser in the FA Cup quarter-final against Newcastle to force extra-time and struck their fifth and final spot-kick in the 5-3 penalty shootout success as the Blues eventually finished runners-up to Liverpool in the cup competition.

Rounding off his contributions with the opener in a 3-2 win at Nottingham Forest in May 2024, Chelsea finished sixth to qualify for the Conference League and Misha headed off to represent his nation at EURO 2024 where they exited at the group stage in Germany that summer.

Following that, a new season brought a new head coach to the helm in Enzo Maresca and, despite being mainly employed off the bench in the Premier League, the winger impressed during the start of their European campaign with six goal involvements - three goals, three assists - in four League Phase fixtures until his progress came to a halt.

Fresh start

Misha’s goalscoring display in a 2-0 away win over German side Heidenheim on 28 November 2024 remained his last competitive involvement until his Spurs debut in our goalless draw at Nottingham Forest, missing almost two years of action due to a provisional ban for an alleged anti-doping violation which was cleared by the Football Association at the end of July.

With a strong mindset and also a strong faith – the words “Only Jesus” tattooed on his neck and, also in English, “Dear God, if today I lose my hope please remind me that your plans are better than my dreams” on his chest – that helps drive him, especially through such a long spell out of the game.

The Ukraine international, who has spent much of this year training individually at non-league Uxbridge FC’s Honeycroft ground to keep his fitness and skills sharp, now reunites with ‘football father’ Roberto four years later and embarks on a new chapter here at Spurs.

"I will demand a lot from Misha and it is our job to help him find the best version of himself,” said our Head Coach upon the Ukrainian’s deadline day arrival. “If we do that then he can become a very important player for us."

Their first spell together at Shakhtar got the most out of a young talent breaking through in his homeland. Now 25, with 28 international caps and 139 senior club appearances to his name, this second spell is a time of rediscovery and opportunity for a hard-working, dynamic winger with a point to prove.